African Countries ask for Trump’s Apology

The organisation representing African countries has demanded that US President Donald Trump apologise after he reportedly called nations on the continent “shitholes”.

The group’s mission in Washington DC expressed its “shock, dismay and outrage” and said the Trump administration misunderstood Africans.

The US leader made the alleged remark in a Thursday meeting on immigration.

But Mr Trump has denied using the language reported.

He has been backed by two Republicans who were at the White House meeting, but Democratic Senator Dick Durbin said Mr Trump called African countries “shitholes” several times and used “racist” language.

On Friday, Mr Trump on Friday tweeted that his language he used at the private meeting with lawmakers to discuss immigration legislation had been “tough”.

But he added that the words attributed to him were “not the language used”.

The pan-African grouping represents 55 member states throughout the continent. It succeeded the Organisation of African Unity – which originated in the decolonisation struggles of the early 1960s – in 2002.

The remarks were allegedly made when lawmakers visited him on Thursday to discuss a bipartisan proposal that would impose new restrictions on immigration but protect the so-called “Dreamers” – hundreds of thousands of immigrants brought to the US illegally as children – from deportation.

Mr Trump was said to have told them that instead of granting temporary residency to citizens of countries hit by natural disasters, war or epidemics, the US should instead be taking in migrants from countries like Norway.

“Why are we having all these people from shithole countries come here?” the Washington Post quoted him as saying.